The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1887-01-15

Who Have Fallen as the Leaves do Fall.
From the Philadelphia Press.
BROOKLYN, Dec. 20 As one who
saunters through the fields in Autumn
gathering flowers, so Time comes to this
New Year with arms full gathered from
| among men of the gentle, the froward,
the strong and wise, and of those who
die as 1.-The fool dieth.' But, besides
the men of name, known aud talked
about, what numberless hosts haze gone
into the shadow-land, silently, unan-
| nounced, unknown, except to the half
| dozen who lived uuder the same root.
Who remembers tho multitude of
leaves which clothed the trees around
our dwellings? they danced or quivered,
threw down their tremulous shadows I'M
til Autumn came, and one by one they
lot 90 of lite. No one counted them or
missed amy single leaf. The wind swept
away some, the rain overweighed others;
tho very dew was too heavy for the feeble
remainder, out of whose veins the air had
sucked the juice. At length the trees
are bare. No fruit, no birds, no leaves,
nor could anyone tell whittier all those
had gone that made the Sum mer musical
and gay. AS leaves die SO myriads have
died this year. The great multitude 20
forth and no one observes it or much
misses their presence. They run, they
shout, grow weary, are silent and give
! place to others, who run tho race, strive
and shout, grow languid, murmur fare
we'll into ears that themselves grow dull
and hear no more. The exceeding great
multitude of those who every year die,
90 as the mists 90, melt away as clouds
melt, and leave no trace of anything
done. Of the uncountable mu altitude the
history might DO compressed into an
epitaph of three words: "A cry, strife,
sllence''-birth, life, death.
In civilized lands, where manhood at
tains larger diameter, there arc some,
but only few, whose death attracts At
tention, or checks the laughter or the
Passionate cries Of men for day. Fewer
yet are they who are rememb ered for a
year, and but very few for generation!
Then men whom the world remembers
from generation to generation walk upon
solitary way, without association or
company aud alone.
THOSE WHO HAVE PASSED AWAY.
During the yea: 1856 there have passed
from among us few whose names will
lnger for time, but none whom another
generation will remember. Who is there
that has by heroic life exalted the ideal
of manhood and made it easier for men
to ASCEND above all seltishness? Who Is
there that has given to literature the
power to charm away sorrow, care and
neglect? Who is there that has widened
the bounds of knowledge and so enlarged
the life of generations? Who has purged
religion of its sordidness, its narrowness
and its bigot and made it seem beau
titul to men, distilling JOY and good will9
Lower down, far lower, in the great
crowd of useful men. some have finished
their life labors aud their names deserve
a short remembrance before they dlsap-
pear below the horizon, as all our names
will soon do. We mention but lew.
Charles Francis Adams: A good man,
untarnished, who in the days of mighty
war stood at the Court of st. James and
with wise diplomacy kept England out of
the snares set for her, and smoothed the
way for his country out of entang lements
and foreign iuterierences. He belonged
TO family possessed of the genius OF
common sense. The quality seems inbred
and hereditary. If no one of the name
has risen to pre-eminence, tho family,
taken together. forms galaxy. Not pop
ular while living, somewhat cold, unsym-
right, death mellows mems feelings and
they are popular in history
Horatio Seymour has passed on. A
pleasing citizen, suavs in disposition and
winning in social relations. In public af
fairs strong among things easy and weak
among things difficult. If deep moral
conviction had been added to his char
acter he would have been statesmen.
He was little too good to be a success
full politician, and not good enough to be
great as a statesmen. So kind, SO genial,
SO benevolent, it was pity that he was
deficient in that underlying moral sense
which raises men to the top Of the times
in which they live.
John Kelly: A manager of such mon as
constitute tue politicians of New York
city. He sought for himself none Of
those things with which he bribed his
greedy followers. His political philoso
ply was that national politics are useful
for the control Of politics in Now York
state; the politics of the state were use.
full in controlling the city of New York
and New York was useful in governing
Tammany Hall. That without many
personal good qualities, scorning for him
self those course elements by which he
controlled the sordid crowd of the city,
he seemed to have had the same kind OF
enjoyment with which driver of wild
horses manages his tunultuous team and
compels them to work i'll harness and TO
gether. He has lett behind nothing
wherewith to build monument or even
to construct tablet.
MAN WHO DID SOME GOOD AND LITTLE
HARM.
Samuel }. Tiden: A man Of much po-
litical sagacity if the field be not too
large. He was sharpensr of other mems
wit. Men went to him for counsel. Hs
kent sort Of seclusion, 4 yelled oracle
speaking IN whispers, sort OF feline in
tellect that avoided open and direct ways,
but came round to his ends by sort Of
stealth. o. the whole his influence upon
the economies of the state of New York
was good. He was strong enough to be
large for him. He died wholly when he
died. There is no more of him left be-
hind The inscription might be. "He
did some good and but little harm"
David Davis: A kind man, waiting for
his opportunity, which never came. He
meant to be a great man. He thought
that he was fitted for it, and held himse II
ready to go up whenever his fellow-citi-
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